Wednesday, August 4, 2010

John Tran and Bank Fraud

"A former San Jose bank manager is expected to spend six years in state prison after pleading guilty to embezzling more than $550,000, primarily from elderly clients, police said.

John Tran, 37, entered guilty pleas Friday to theft from an elder, fraud and forgery, drawing to a close an investigation by the financial crimes division of the San Jose Police Department........

Investigators believe Tran victimized customers of the Wells Fargo Bank on Lincoln Avenue in San Jose, where he used to be a manager.

The thefts continued even after Tran left the bank in February 2009, police said. He would visit people at their homes, talk them into making investments and then steer their cashier checks his way, investigators said.

The case began in January, after a customer and her daughter visited the branch. The daughter wanted to know why her mother was being visited by a bank employee and why her investments weren't showing up in her account.

When there was no satisfactory answer from bank officials, the daughter called the police.

The investigation was led by Detective Leonard Lim, who used search warrants to track the path of cashier checks and suspicious withdrawals.........."